Contact-brush.



N0. 653,535. Pa'iented July l0, I900. S. L. NEELY.

CONTACT BRUSH.

(Application filed. Oct. 23, 1899.)

(No Model.)

1 l1 ssc s UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL L; NEELY, OF rritation, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO HENRYF. KNEBEL, or SAME PLACE.

CONTACT-BRUSH.-

srnorrronrroiv forming part of Letters Patent No. 653,585, dated July10, 1900. Application filed October 23, 1899- Serial No. 734,519. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may oonoerm,

Be it known that I, SAMUEL L. NEELY, a citizen of the United States,residing'at Pierron, in the county of Bond and State of Illinois, haveinvented anew and useful Contact- Brush, of which the following is aspecifica tion.

This invention relates to contact-brushes in general, and moreparticularly to that class employed in connection with moving vehicles,and especially upon railway-trains, when it is desired to close anexternal circuit comprising conductor-wires strung along the track, theobject of the invention being to provide a cheap and simplecontact-brushwhich may be employed for closing the circuit between the two conductorswith which it engages and in which no leakageof current will occur.

In the drawings forming a portion of this specification, and in whichsimilar numerals of reference designate like and corresponding parts inthe several views, Figure 1 is a view partially in section and partiallyin elevation and showing a locomotive-cab equipped with contact-brushesconstructed in accordance with the present invention, the brushes beingadapted to engage wires suitably supported adjacent to the track-rails.Fig. 2 shows a portion of the top of a locomotivecab and illustratesthelocation of brushes thereon when contact is to be made with wiressupported upon poles at a considerable elevation. Fig. 3 is a detailelevation showing one of the rubber insulating-plates with thebrush-bristles attached thereto, said insulating-plate being mountedupon one of the side pieces of the head of the brush. Fig. 4 is alongitudinal section of the brush, showing the bristles shortened andillustrating the method of securing the bristles in place.

Referring now. to the drawings, and more particularlyto Figs. 3 and 4,the brush comprises a head consisting of two similar parts 5 and 6,having their adjacent faces recessed. In the recesses 7 and 8 of theinner faces of the parts 5 and 6, at the forward endsof said parts, areplaced sheetsof rubber 9 and 10, which extend outwardly and beyond thehead, as shown. The portion 6 of the head is recessed rearwardly of therubber plate 10, but to a less depth than the recess 8, and in thislast-named recess 11 are disposed a plurality of parallelconducting-wires 12, the rear ends of which are bent laterally at rightangles and forced into corresponding perforations in the element 6 ofthe head. Beneath the wires 12 and transversely thereof in the rear ofthe plate 10 are arranged cross-wires 14 and 15, upon which the wires 12rest and through the medium of which they are electrically connected,the wires 12 being further secured in place by means of staples 16 and17, which .are arranged to straddle the wires 12 and to pass into theelement 6 of the head. The

staples 16 straddle also the wire 15, while the staples 17 pass throughthe rubber plate 10. The element 5 of the head has a recess 19,

which corresponds to the recess 8, and in this crank lever. which ispivotally mounted in the frame of the cab of the locomotive and has anoperating-handle 25, through the medium of which the lever may beoperated to lower the brush and engage the wires 12 thereof withconductor-wires 26 and 27, which are supported upon suitable insulators28,.

arranged at one side of the trackway. The bell-crank lever maybe held inthis position by means of a notched segment 29, adapted for engagementby a pawl 30, carried by the bell-crank lever.

In Fig. 2 of the drawings the plate 21 is connected directly with oneend of a lever 31, having a cord 32 attached to its oppositeend and bymeans of which the lever may be operated to erect the brush and engagethe wires 12 thereof with conductor-wires 33 and 34, suitably supportedabove the cab of the 10- comotive. It will be of course understood thatthese conductor-wires are in circuit with a suitable alarm or signal anda source of electricity and that when they are thus bridged by the brushthe signal or alarm is sounded.

As shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, the elea I I f ments and 6 of thehead of the brush are clamped together by means of clamping-bolts 35;also, between the rubber plate 10 and the wires 12 is a third cross-wire36, which is straddled by the staples 17.

With the foregoing construction it will be seen that the brush maybeengaged and disengaged with the contact-wires when the train may bestanding still or when for any other reason it may be desired to breakthe contact. The result will be a saving in battery, and otheradvantages will be evident.

What is claimed is- 1. A contact-brush comprising a head including twoelements, a plurality of wires clamped between the elements, connectionsbetween the wires, and elastic plates lying between the elements and thewires.

2. Acontact-brush comprising two elements having recesses in their innerfaces, rubber plates disposed in the recesses, wires disposed betweenthe plates, and electrical connections between the wires.

cluding two elements, a plurality of wires having their rear endsengaged with one of the elements, cross-wires lying between thecludingtwo elements having recessed inner faces, a plurality of wiresdisposed in the recesses of one element and having their inner endsengaged with said element, cross-wiresdisposed between the first-namedwires and the element in the recesses of which they lie, means forholding the elements together, and an elastic plate clamped between theelements.

7. A contact-brush comprising a head including two elements, a pluralityof wires disposed between the elements, cross-wires in electricalcontact with the first-named wires, and securing means passed over thecrosswires and the adjacent first-named wires and engaged with theelements of the head.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL L. NEELY.

